Mebane among finalists for Beretta plant

Published: Friday, February 14, 2014 at 04:31 PM.

MEBANE — The N.C. Industrial Center in Mebane was considered by Beretta
USA
last fall as a potential site for a $45 million firearm manufacturing plant.

Beretta ultimately decided in late January instead to select an industrial park in
Gallatin
,
Tenn.
, to build a firearms manufacturing facility and research and development center creating 300 jobs. Beretta plans to build its plant in
Gallatin
this year and begin manufacturing firearms at the site.

Alamance County Area Chamber of Commerce President Mac Williams said last week that while the site in Mebane wasn’t selected it was encouraging to know that it was at least among the six finalists Beretta considered.

Williams said last fall he became aware that Beretta was considering sites in the Southeast and submitted the
N.C.
Industrial
Center
to the state to be put on a list for review by the firearm manufacturer.

A management team from Beretta visited the center in October. Williams said the company had considered 80 sites nationwide during its search.

Williams said the team from Beretta visited the Mebane site again Nov. 2. The visit included a meeting with Gov. Pat McCrory at
Alamance
Community College
to discuss the benefits of coming to the
N.C.
Industrial
Center
.

MEBANE — The N.C. Industrial Center in Mebane was considered by Beretta USA last fall as a potential site for a $45 million firearm manufacturing plant.

Beretta ultimately decided in late January instead to select an industrial park in Gallatin, Tenn., to build a firearms manufacturing facility and research and development center creating 300 jobs. Beretta plans to build its plant in Gallatin this year and begin manufacturing firearms at the site.

Alamance County Area Chamber of Commerce President Mac Williams said last week that while the site in Mebane wasn’t selected it was encouraging to know that it was at least among the six finalists Beretta considered.

Williams said last fall he became aware that Beretta was considering sites in the Southeast and submitted the N.C.IndustrialCenter to the state to be put on a list for review by the firearm manufacturer.

A management team from Beretta visited the center in October. Williams said the company had considered 80 sites nationwide during its search.

Williams said the team from Beretta visited the Mebane site again Nov. 2. The visit included a meeting with Gov. Pat McCrory at AlamanceCommunity College to discuss the benefits of coming to the N.C.IndustrialCenter.

Williams said the Beretta team narrowed its search to six sites that were spread across three states. The Mebane site was the only site among the six in North Carolina.

About 10 days after the Nov. 2 meeting, Williams said he was notified that Beretta officials had eliminated the N.C.Industrial Center as a potential site. Williams said discussions with Beretta officials never reached the incentive phase.

While it was disappointing that the site in Mebane wasn’t selected, Williams said, the N.C.IndustrialCenter’s economic potential was further validated since it made the final list for potential sites.

Mebane City Manager David Cheek said Beretta officials had considered other sites in North Carolina before narrowing the list to six.

“Mebane ended up being their favorite site in the state,” Cheek said.

After Beretta officials made a second visit, there wasn’t any more contact between the firearm manufacturer and the city, Cheek said.

Greensboro-based Samet Corp. has developed the N.C.IndustrialCenter over the past 13 years. Companies at the center include Ford Motor Co., Badcock Furniture, Nypro, Kidde and Tri Vantage.